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The Monarch
The Monarch '''(real name: Malcom Fitzcarraldo', born 1968) is one of the main characters and the primary antagonist on the Adult Swim show ''The Venture Bros. He is a supervillain who has modeled himself after the Monarch butterfly. He is voiced by Christopher McCulloch. Character Description The Monarch's primary traits are his butterfly/royalty theme (based on both Monarch terms for butterfly and royalty), his shrill voice, and his obsessive hatred of Thaddeus Venture. He has set his base of operations inside a floating cocoon (many characters have commented on how illogical this is), and all of his weaponry is modeled on physical traits of butterflies. In spite of his fascination with them, the Monarch remains oblivious to the actual biology and physical capabilities of butterflies.''The Terrible Secret of Turtle Bay'' The Monarch commands a set of henchmen dressed in yellow and black attire with butterfly wings, all known solely by number (except for junior henchmen). The Monarch frequently kills his henchmen when he's in a bad mood. The henchmen are passionately loyal to the Monarch, and it's suggested many of them were down on their luck or troubled when he recruited them and gave them a purpose. The Monarch "co-arches" with his wife Doctor Mrs. The Monarch (formerly his lover and aide Doctor Girlfriend), a gravelly-voiced woman with a striking resemblance to a young Jackie Kennedy. At the end of the second season, the Monarch and Doctor Girlfriend were finally wed, while the Guild of Calamitous Intent officially sanctioned the wedding at the beginning of season three.''Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny'' After their marriage, Doctor Girlfriend changed her name to Doctor Mrs. The Monarch. The Monarch's arch-rival (to him, at least) is Dr. Venture. The Monarch's entire career of "arching" Dr. Venture was unsanctioned by The Guild of Calamitous Intent; "The Monarch" was not even a registered member of the Guild until the beginning of season three.''Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny'' Prior to that, he had been registered with the Guild as various low-level henchmen for other villains. The Monarch's hatred for Venture stems from some reason unknown, with the first instance of attempted murder occurring when they were both in college.''Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny'' It's intimated by his wife that Venture was somehow involved in the destruction of The Monarch's career. The Monarch is eventually forced to give up illegally "arching" Dr. Venture in order to wed Doctor Girlfriend, but makes repeated attempts to rekindle their one-sided rivalry. He also hates Hank, Dean, and Brock Samson to a lesser extent because of their affiliation with Dr. Venture. The Monarch has had the opportunity on numerous occasions to significantly harm Thaddeus Venture and his family, but prefers to play at a "deadly game of Cat and Also Cat." Character History Malcom, the child who would later become The Monarch was the child of a wealthy couple. His father Don Fitzcarraldo was a playboy and butterfly enthusiast whose secret alter ego was a talented hero named The Blue Morpho. At some unknown point in his past, Malcom's parents knew Dr. Jonas Venture Sr. and would take the young Monarch to play with Rusty, though for some unknown reason The Monarch has no recollection of the events. The Monarch's parents would apparently die when their private plane crashed in the New Jersey Pine Barrens in 1976. The Monarch--then only eight years old--was the only one to survive the crash, and spent three months living in the forest amidst a colony of Monarch butterflies, who "adopted" him. As he was ignorant of their migration patterns, the butterflies eventually left, and the devastated Monarch hitchhiked to the city to collect his sizable inheritance. The remainder of his boyhood and teenage years were likely spent in New York, as ''The Trial of the Monarch'' revealed Monarch's connection with the 1980s New York punk scene. The Monarch apparently left New York's punk scene to go to college at State University.Past Tense In college, he was known as Malcom and shared a creative writing class with Dr. Venture. Apparently, The Monarch devoted all of his assignments to butterflies (which led Venture to initially assume he was a "closet case"). At some point in college, The Monarch made his first attempt to kill Thaddeus, known as T.S. in college, by blowing up a school laboratory building, but not only was T.S. not in class that day, T.S. got the credit for blowing up the building and blowing off his lab partner Ünderbheit's jaw.''Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny'' After graduating college with a BA in Creative Writing, the Monarch went to work at the Guild of Calamitous Intent as a registered low-level henchman to various villains including Phantom Limb (known as Shadowman 9), while he waited for his trust fund to come out of escrow. During this time, he also illegally moonlighted as his "Monarch" alter-ego, unsuccessfully arching a young Dr. Venture. It was during his henching days when he met his future wife; she had just failed at being a solo super-villain (Lady AuPair), and accepted a Number 2 position working for Phantom Limb, this time as Queen Etheria. Donning one of his "early version" butterfly costumes, he attended a dinner party held by the Guild, and successfully seduced Queen Etheria in his car parked outside. However, when Phantom Limb discovered this, both Queen Etheria and the Monarch were forced to leave together. With the guidance of his new Number 2 (Doctor Girlfriend), the Monarch gives up his henching career, and turned to full-time arching of Doctor Venture. Using the Monarch's vast wealth, they built a giant, floating military base from which to launch his attacks on Dr. Venture. Near the end of the first season, he and Doctor Girlfriend have a falling out over ''The Flight of The Monarch'', a tell-all book published by the Monarch's henchmen (according to the Monarch, "filled with lies and pictures of also-lies"), which brought to light her salacious past with a variety of other supervillains. She left him and went back to Phantom Limb, who in turn framed the Monarch for murder so that he could have Doctor Girlfriend to himself. The Monarch manages to escape from prison and rebuilds his career, eventually winning back Doctor Girlfriend; The Monarch and Doctor Girlfriend are officially married at the beginning of Season 3, whereupon she changes her name to Dr. Mrs. The Monarch. In return for recognition and leniency from the Guild (and for permission to marry his wife), the Monarch is forced to stop arching Dr. Venture, a fact which he has trouble coming to terms with. Season 3 sees The Monarch sinking into depression over not arching Venture, by killing all eight of his "new assignments" from the Guild, nearly ruining his marriage, raiding the Venture compound, and finally arching Jonas Venture, Jr. on a trial basis. Thanks to a "family bylaws" loophole found by Dr. Mrs. The Monarch, Season 3 ends with a horrific showdown at the Venture compound, where The Monarch dons shooting, flying armor and faces off against the O.S.I. alongside an army of henchmen. He ends up killing all of the Hank-and-Dean clone slugs, several O.S.I. troopers, many of his own henchmen, and finally falls to earth in a nauseated bundle, to be picked up by his remaining henchmen and his wife. In the second episode of Season 4, the Monarch kidnaps Hank & Dean and tries to order Dr. Venture to pay a ransom.''Handsome Ransom'' However, Hank is immediately rescued by Captain Sunshine, who takes him back to his lair to make him the new Wonder Boy (The Monarch had killed the last Wonder Boy in a drunken rage while Dr. Girlfriend and he were broken up). Dr. Venture gets Dean back, and The Monarch and he track down Captain Sunshine's lair to get Hank back. The Monarch's wife creates a solar ray cannon, guessing that Captain Sunshine's powers don't work at night. However, the ray gun empowers Sunshine, who then defeats the Monarch. The Monarch, his wife, and Henchman 21 head home in a cab. One of them then fires a dart at the cabbie when he inquires about the fare. In ''Operation P.R.O.M'', the Monarch and Dr. Girlfriend head to the prom (taking Sergeant Hatred's ex-wife Tinyfeet along to help them get in) while meeting up with 21 as well. However, when he admits that he realizes Dr. Venture is not a bad person, the Monarch accuses 21 of being drugged. An inebriated 21 snaps and angrily reveals his infatuation with Dr. Girlfriend, even telling the Monarch about their previous amorous encounter, but the Monarch merely laughs it off due to his "swinger" relationship with Dr. Girlfriend (common among villains) and tells 21 to stop being a crybaby. Having had enough, 21 quits his job as henchman and storms off. During Season 5, the Monarch continues to try and antagonize Dr. Venture but repeatedly fails in every attempt as well as believing that Henchman 21 still works for him, much to his wife's dismay. In the finale, his wife is offered a position on The Council of 13 and she kidnaps Dr. Venture who, after failing to torment with physical torture, Dr. Girlfriend succeeds in breaking him with mental torture. Henchman 21 also returns just as the Cocoon is destroyed along with a majority of the Monarch's henchman by Sergeant Hatred. As a result of the Cocoon and his mansion's destruction, the Monarch, along with his wife and Henchman 21, have moved into his childhood home in Newark, New Jersey. In the beginning of Season 6, he's seen trying to adjust to having no base, henchman, and his wife being on the council. While exploring the house, he discovers to his shock that his father was once a super-hero called the Blue Morpho who had a secret base under the house. He decided to hide the discovery from his wife, until he decided what to do, originally wanting to turn it into his lair and ignore his father's legacy. However, this changed after trying to intimidate other villains so he could arch Dr. Venture and realizing it wouldn't work after being framed by a villain named CopyCat who made it look like he had broken a deal with Doctor Girlfriend about arching Venture. The Monarch eventually decided to take up the role of Blue Morpho after 21 showed him a video of his father and Jonas Venture Sr. talking about how he has decided to become a bad guy, right before the two have sex with two women that 21 assures him is not his mom. The Monarch and 21 soon kill a villain named Haranguetan, who was arching the Ventures and decide to defeat any villain assigned to arch Venture as a way to clear out the competition. They also withhold this information from Dr. Mrs. The Monarch to avoid trouble with the council of 13. As of ''The High Cost of Loathing'', the trust fund left to the Monarch by his parents had gone into the red fixing up his house in Newark. Moreover, Dr. Z. reassessed the Monarch's Equally Matched Aggression Level as only a Level 5, much too low for arching Dr. Venture. Professor Victor von Helping was assigned as a new Arch, though the Monarch and Henchman 21 were not even able to injure the metal-clad scientist. Still, Dean Venture wrote The Monarch a check for a million dollars in order for The Monarch to leave his professor alone. This income allowed The Monarch to win both the highest Guild income for the month and a bump in Equally Matched Aggression Level to 6. Personality Rivalry with Dr. Venture The Monarch's entire personality is based around his unending hatred of his arch nemesis Dr. Venture. He has never stated what made him hate Venture, but it changed him into a villain hellbent on revenge by any means. He is a colorful villain whose theatrics are not matched by his competence - his plans tend to go awry through mixtures of error, arrogance, bad luck, being outwitted, and Brock Samson killing henchmen until enough are dead to stop any schemes. He also is given to grandiose speeches and phrases, some of which get away from him or don't sound like he expected. (Though to be fair, the ominous music that plays during his speeches tends to balance it out.) Murder and Villainy He has a serious murder streak, regularly killing henchmen for minor offenses, killing an intern to sneak onto the Venture compound, and murdering dozens of villains in his crusade to arch Venture. There are few lines he won't cross to suit his own purposes, including breaking Guild laws. Despite his seeming ineptness, he can be quite skilled at arching and is considered by many (including Doctor Mrs. The Monarch and 21) to be a person truly talented in villainy, filled with a villainous kind of hatred that's almost an art form. After he was banned from arching Dr. Venture, he ran through eight arches in a few months, killing each of them on the first day of arching them. In the case of Dr. Dugong he attempted to channel his hatred of Dr. Venture, causing him to slip into a temporary moment of insanity and hallucinate Venture's face when looking at Dugong. He was almost assassinated by O.S.I. for it, but managed to escape through sheer tenacity and trickery. His abilities have grown over the series and, along the way, he has gained allies and a powerful henchman in the form of 21, who turned his following of inept idiot henchmen into a fearsome fighting force. In fact, The Monarch was able to intimidate Tim-Tom and Kevin by threatening them with death if they tried to order him about. This was notable as they are usually fearless and murderous, as well scaring the other henchmen. Self-Loathing The Monarch has admitted, only to 21, that sometimes he hates himself more than other villains hate their arch-nemeses. Despite his wealth, power, beautiful wife, and loyal henchmen, he seems eternally insecure and self-loathing. The reasons for this have yet to be explained. It's not entirely impossible that, on some level, The Monarch realizes he's wasted most of his life over what may have started as a petty grudge. Charisma and Passion The Monarch can be witty and charming, and possesses a cutting sarcastic wit. Unfortunately, these traits tend to emerge right before he does something very unwise. He often explodes in episodes of violent rage which get him into a lot of trouble. These rages are often accompanied by executions of whichever hapless henchman angered him. For some reason, he rarely teams up with other super-villains, preferring to work alone with his henchmen and wife. (Likely, the Monarch prefers to have the spotlight to himself.) When he does team up, he inevitably betrays them and goes his own way. He is deeply in love with his wife and extremely protective of her. The two have an erratic but passionate long-term history. The Monarch can be both loving and playful (as witnessed in several intimate scenes), but also bitterly insecure over their relationship. This insecurity has almost cost them their relationship several times. Metamorphosis The possible explanation for The Monarch's odd mixture of ineptness and genre-aware cunning, may have been given in the season 3 premiere Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny, in which it was revealed that The Monarch was actually a Guild henchman who started his own career as a full-blown "villain" without "going through the proper channels" of the Guild or receiving formal training. Depending on how one looks at it, The Monarch could actually be seen as a very successful henchman, who was able to bootstrap his way up to being a major villain, and win over Dr. Girlfriend. This furthers the dichotomy between the Monarch and Dr. Venture: Venture started out with everything, the son of the great Jonas Venture that had all of the advantages, and his life turned into a failure. The Monarch may not be the most successful or competent villain ever, but compared to Venture, he's at least got the excuse that he wasn't supposed to be a major villain, but refused to play the hand fate dealt him. By the end of the seventh season, The Monarch shows considerable maturation as a villain. Though he retains his whiny attitude, he goes through the proper procedures to raise his EMA level to 10 in order to arch Dr. Venture again. He seems to have dreams and plans to create a new army of henchmen with powerful weapons and a new, more advanced cocoon. When offered the chance to kill his nemesis and remain a level 9--with the caveat that he would be a solo villain, without the aide of 21--The Monarch refused; he had acknowledged that his hatred of Dr. Venture defined him, not to mention that he was all too aware that he was too old to start over with a new arch. He also may have seen the Guild handing Venture to him as a cop out and too easy a win after his lifetime of struggling to kill his enemy on his own. Relationships With Other Characters Family Don Fitzcarraldo Not much is known about his relationship with his father, though the monarch is shown to love his father and misses him, due to losing his parents when he was very young in the plane crash. During the early episodes of season 6, The Monarch and Henchman 21 discover his father's hidden lair, revealing that he was in fact The Blue Morpho, a famous vigilante superhero. When they discover his lair, The Monarch at first denies the idea, as he believed his father was just a "boozed up socialite" with a fondness for butterflies. But he eventually took on The Blue Morpho's mantle in hopes of getting his arching rights to Dr. Venture back. It's also later revealed that his father is still alive as Vendata, though his memories prior to 1977 have been mostly erased by Dr. Z. In ''Arrears in Science'', some form of their relationship was seen as a malfunctioning Vendata is shown to still have fragmented memories of his wife and child (later hinted that Jonas Venture Sr. is The Monarch's biological father). When The Monarch breaks into VenTech Tower to see what's going on and kill the Morpho impersonator, he unwittingly interrupts his father's conversation with Jonas and pauses his attempts. Though it takes a moment, Morpho/Vendata soon recognizes the grown Monarch as his son, Malcom. He seems relieved to see his son has survived the plane crash that took him and his wife as he weakly calls him by his real name, to The Monarch's great shock. Jonas and Vendata engage in a fight, with The Monarch following to know why Vendata/Morpho knows his real name. The fight ends up incapacitating both men, but before he shuts down again The Monarch is quick to rush to Vendata/Blue Morpho's side. In a confused but almost hopeful tone, he calls him "Daddy". In his last moments, Morpho/Vendata looks up at him with a smile, confirming his identity to him. He looks at his son, showing that he clearly loved him as his own, just before apparently dying. Monarch was shocked at this, as he learned his father was still alive. Despite his brief joy, he took credit for defeating the vigilante to maintain his cover for the villains. 'Dr. Girlfriend' The Monarch first met Dr. Girlfriend back when she was still known as Lady Au Pair and the Monarch was "Shadowman 9", a henchman for Phantom Limb. Dr. Girlfriend later became Phantom Limb's number two (Queen Etheria). At the time Malcom was moonlighting as The Monarch, and showed up to a party hosted by Phantom Limb as such, effectively wooing Dr. Girlfriend. They left together and soon after became a couple, with Dr. Girlfriend now serving as the Monarch's number two. In the season one episode ''Trial of the Monarch'' they broke up. Dr. Girlfriend went back to Phantom Limb, who later framed The Monarch for murder and has him sent to prison. In season two, he breaks out and tries to win her back. In the episode ''I Know Why the Caged Bird Kills'' Dr. Henry Killinger reunites them and they plan to get married in ''Showdown at Cremation Creek'' (however, Phantom Limb interrupts the wedding and they aren't officially wed until the episode ''Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny''.) She now goes by the name Dr. Mrs. the Monarch and instead of being his number two, she is his equal. In Season 6, he is still jealous of her position on the Council but goes behind her back when discovering the Morpho Cave and disguising himself as a vigilante to kill the villains assigned to arch Dr. Venture. Eventually in Season 7, Wide Wale holds him hostage to kill him for revenge of his brother's death, his secret is exposed when she comes to his rescue. When the original Blue Morpho (aka Vendata) is found, she is concerned for her husband knowing that it's his father, though that revelation and how both processed it is never seen. He and his wife continue where they left off, with him struggling as a level 5. When he's revealed to be officially broke and is ready to throw in the towel, she pulls him back up with a speech. They are still going strong, as she clearly believes in her husband and supports him, still showing she loves him. Surprisingly, The Monarch acts as a steadying hand to Sheila by preventing her from getting in a fight with Agent Kimberly McManus, an intercession that seemingly saves Dr. Mrs. The Monarch from losing her career as councilwoman. Ironically, it is that same career that ends their villainous partnership (though not their marriage), for later she makes the decision to retire from active supervillainy in order to retain her seat on the Guild Council. 'Dr. Venture' Dr. Venture is his sworn enemy but it's never been revealed why. Popular theories are that it started in college, as they went to the same one. However, due to their incredibly similar appearances, it's also believed that they may be related in some way. It's shown in a picture they met as children, but The Monarch claims he didn't remember it and was shocked they knew each other. For many years, Dr. Venture viewed their rivalry as more of an annoyance then any hatred. At the end of [[Dia de los Dangerous!|''Dia de los Dangerous!]] while Brock and Dr. Venture are rescuing Dean and Hank from The Monarch's Cocoon, Hank thanks his father for showing up stating "The Monarch was getting all creepy uncle on us." This could be pure coincidence or an early case of foreshadowing. It is implied in [[Arrears in Science|''Arrears in Science]] that Dr. Venture's father, Jonas Venture Sr. might be The Monarch's real father, making him the half-brother of his enemy, although neither are aware of this. In The Saphrax Protocol, it is revealed that the two are indeed "blood relatives," though how exactly is not elaborated on. The Monarch was shocked to learn that he is related to his mortal enemy. Subordinates 'The Henchmen' Other than Henchman 21 and Henchman 24, he thinks of his henchman as fairly disposable and insists that they prefer to be called "minions". He came to value them once 21 became his general and made the henchmen more efficient. Monarch even gain the loyalty and respect of the Murderous Muppets, after intimidating them and establishing his status as leader. After the loss of The Fluttering Horde in Season 5, Henchman 21 becomes The Monarch's sole henchman. He later recruits a group of migrant workers who rebuild his house as his new army. Following the "Tenning" ceremony in ''The Saphrax Protocol'', 21 becomes a Level 10 villain in his own right and The Monarch's Number 2, the role formerly held by Dr. Mrs. The Monarch. Enemies 'Phantom Limb' Initially the Monarch used to be one of his henchman (along with 24) and even then Phantom Limb did not seem to treat him with respect. This may the reason (besides the hate for Dr. Venture) which motivated the Monarch to become his own villain. The Monarch angered Limb by stealing his girlfriend and since then Phantom Limb disliked him however, Phantom Limb did not show any hints of trying to get revenge on him (probably because outside of sexual attraction he doesn't really have any feelings for Dr. Girlfriend), but he does see him as a threat to his reformed relationship as in ''The Trial of the Monarch''. The Monarch was unaware that Limb sent him to prison for life and attempted to keep him there. Very soon, the Monarch realized that it was because of Limb and with help from King Gorilla soon escaped. They did not see each until [[Showdown at Cremation Creek (Part I)|''Showdown at Cremation Creek (Part I)]] when he tried to ruin the Monarch's wedding and kidnap Dr. Girlfriend, he was later arrested for this and he wanted to kill him. However he planned to get revenge on Dr. Venture instead of the Monarch because Dr. Venture was the one who helped him to get back his bride. In the Season 6 special [[All This and Gargantua-2|''All This and Gargantua-2]], Phantom Limb and The Revenge Society stayed at The Monarch's childhood home before The Monarch, his wife, and Henchman 21 moved back in. The Monarch soon became aware that Phantom Limb was staying over after seeing a cooking knife that matched Phantom Limb's tastes. He accurately deduced Phantom Limb's plan and became determined to capture him to achieve a spot on the The Council of 13 but that was soon forgotten. In Season 6, while Phantom Limb seems to be over his attraction to Dr. Mrs. The Monarch and has let go of his hatred towards The Monarch, the latter still holds disdain for Phantom Limb for his previous actions. During Season 7, Phantom Limb approves of the monarch seemingly defeating the The Blue Morpho, unaware of the truth. Monarch accepted it, as he hoped to boost his reputation in the GUILD. 'Wide Wale' In Season 6, The Monarch made an enemy out of Wide Wale after the latter stole his arching rights to Dr. Venture. He struck back at him by taking out most of the villains on Fiends and Family Plan. When they met in ''Faking Miracles'', Wide Wale was annoyed by his audacity to wear villain clothing for his daughter's party and being present in front of his legal business partner guests. Wide Wale later remarked on how Monarch doesn't follow villain protocol. During Season 7, Wide Wale is still annoyed by Monarch. In ''The Rorqual Affair'', Monarch masquerades as the blue morpho and tries to threaten Wide Wale into stop arching Venture. Monarch was confident that his plan would work, though it tragically backfired as his escape plan failed and he was captured. Monarch listened to Wide Wale's mutation story while also revealing Monarch killed his brother Dr. Dugong and he wants revenge for it. Monarch was scared at hearing this and was subjected to a savage beating for his actions. Wide Wale nearly had Hank kill him but the latter refused, so Wide Wale tried to do it himself but Dr. Mrs. The Monarch, Henchman 21, and Red Death arrived along with the presumed dead Douglas who was in hiding after regenerating a new head. With this, Monarch was saved from death since he technically didn't do anything wrong, to his relief. Others King Gorilla The Monarch and King Gorilla were in prison together. They got along though the monarch was put off by King's attraction to him. When The Monarch tried to escape, he saw Phantom Limb had turned all of his associates against him. Monarch looked to King Gorilla for help, though he was reluctant but after hearing how The Monarch was trying to reunite with his girlfriend, he intervened and helped him escape, despite knowing what Phantom Limb would do. King Gorilla stated he was helping, because he could tell how much The Monarch loved Dr. Girlfriend and kissed the monarch goodbye as he escaped. They met again in ''The Diving Bell Vs. The Butter-glider'', where Monarch attends his release party. He is shown upset by King Gorilla's illness and impending fate, most likely because he was grateful that King Gorilla helping reconcile with his girlfriend who became his wife. King Gorilla was happy to see him again and called him "roomie" but was annoyed that Monarch gave him cigarettes. As the guests looked at him for his insensitive gift, Monarch sadly replied that nobody told him. Red Death The Monarch saw him as an obstacle to arch Dr. Venture since he was on the Fiends and Family Plan. Despite that, he recognizes Red Death as legend among the villain society. During ''Red Means Stop'', when 21 refuses to kill anymore The Monarch goes after Red Death and finds him in a park, where he is watching his daughter Lila play with the other children at a playground. The Monarch, thinking himself in disguise, approaches Red Death and the two have a conversation. As they talked, The Monarch prepared to kill him with a concealed gun until Red Death casually identifies The Monarch despite his disguise. The Monarch ceased his attempt to kill Red Death, as he listened to Red Death telling him he knows The Monarch's reputation and was flattered that a legend like Red Death has heard of him and is a fan of his. However, he was scared by Red Death telling him how he has managed to balanced his civilian and villain identity. Red Death's dark villain voice left him so shaken that he had immediately rush to urinate and described how he struggled to keep his composure. Realizing, Red Death was someone that he couldn't kill, Monarch simply faked a scheme to get him to sign away arching rights to Dr. Venture. He pretended to kidnap Red Death's family but the latter threaten to find and kill him, if his family weren't released. Monarch was very scared of this and had the same reaction he had to the villain before. Red Death easily found him and Monarch revealed that it was a ruse and had call his mother-in-law to confirm it. After he did and heard his family were safe, Red Death recognized him as the monarch and had him confess. The two appeared to be on good terms after Monarch explained his Blue Morpho scheme and Red Death had agreed to keep the secret from the council after being permitted to kill someone. In ''The Rorqual Affair'', Red Death had kept his word and hadn't told anyone about The Monarch's activities but does request a seat on the council from Dr. Mrs. The Monarch to save him from Wide Wale. Red Death found Dr. Dugong and arrived in time to rescue him from certain death while Monarch was relieved. Equipment and Abilities Though the Monarch has no powers, his costume is equipped with a variety of gadgets. His costume conceals large butterfly wings crafted by Doctor Girlfriend that allow him to fly, and he also has two wristbands that shoot out a number of darts (variously depicted as either tranquilizers or lethal). He has shown on multiple occasions to be surprisingly competent in battle as he has held his own against a horde of Guild robots on one occasion. In the episode [[Dia de Los Dangerous!|''Dia de Los Dangerous!]], he explains that he was raised by butterflies, which involved living off milkweed, "ensuring his toxicity to this day", though it does not appear to have any bearing on his performance. He is constantly working to upgrade his gadgets and has gone through many versions of his suit. Not much is known of his physical capabilities, though he is able to kill others very easily. He even seemed confident that the could kill the Murderous Muppets, when threatening them and leaving the pair shaken, which is something nobody else could do. While The Monarch has an obvious relish for the theatrics and grandiose aspects of supervillainy, he has proven he's not above cheap tricks and underhanded tactics as a more practical approach. In [[Handsome Ransom|''Handsome Ransom]], The Monarch simply kicked Dr. Venture in the groin and robbed him of the ransom drop while the two were negotiating. All of The Monarch's equipment is based on butterflies. His base is a giant flying cocoon. It has a pink and purple color scheme inside and he refers to the central workstation as his "throne room." The master bedroom's bed doubles as an escape pod, shaped like a smaller cocoon. Its internal defenses were personally designed by him, which may explain why Brock could easily take them out single-handedly.''Are You There, God? It's Me, Dean'' He also has a car, the Monarch-mobile, also decked out in purple, as well as a butterfly-shaped aircraft (with cargo/henchman room in the abdomen) that was only shown once. The cocoon's engine may run on antimatter.[[Showdown at Cremation Creek (Part II)|''Showdown at Cremation Creek (Part II)]] The Monarch also briefly had a "Butterfly Glider" (based off the Green Goblin's weapon), a large golden butterfly shaped personal flying transport that ran on bio-diesel in the episode [[The Diving Bell Vs. The Butter-Glider|''The Diving Bell Vs. The Butter-Glider]].'' After taking up the mantle of The Blue Morpho, The Monarch took to wearing his father's old costume and has full access to the latter's old gadgets which includes tranquilizers, his car, and water scooters, all of which he found in the latter's secret lair. Equally Matched Aggression Level The Monarch's EMA Level has fluctuated significantly over the course of the series. * [[The Devil's Grip|The Devil's Grip]]':' Following an accidental attack by Sergeant Hatred, The Monarch loses Phantom Limb's former home in Malice, The Cocoon, The Pupae Twins (Tim-Tom and Kevin), and every other member of The Fluttering Horde except for Henchman 21, who has just returned from the now-defunct S.P.H.I.N.X. * ''[[Hostile Makeover|'Hostile Makeover']]:''' Dr. Mrs. The Monarch tells Wide Wale that she's a Level 10 villain but her husband only has an EMA Level of '''6. * [[Maybe No Go|''Maybe No Go]]':' Dr. Mrs. The Monarch informs her husband that his arching level is too low to arch the now Level 10 Dr. Venture. She tells him that he's a Level '''6' on the books, but should be re-assessed at an EMA Level of 3''' or '''4 due to the loss of The Cocoon, the home in Malice, and The Fluttering Horde. * [[Rapacity in Blue|''Rapacity in Blue]]':' Dr. Mrs. The Monarch tells The Monarch that if he stops harassing Dr. Venture and quits talking about him entirely she can get his EMA Level bumped up to '''8' when she presents his case at that evening's Council meeting. * [[Tanks for Nuthin'|''Tanks for Nuthin]]:' With no lair or army of henchman The Monarch is consequently downgraded to an EMA Level of '''4' by The Council of 13. He complains to his wife that she promised to bump up his level, to which she counters that he lies around in his bathrobe all day and parties all night with Henchman 21. She proposes he hire more henchman, build a new cocoon, and arch somebody else until he proves he is worthy of arching a Level 10 protagonist like Dr. Venture. * [[A Party for Tarzan|''A Party for Tarzan]]':' Dr. Mrs. The Monarch tells her husband that The Guild will raise his EMA Level from '''4' to 5''' if he successfully "thwarts" hero proctologist Dr. Heinie. * [[the High Cost of Loathing|The High Cost of Loathing]]:' At the beginning of the episode, Dr. Z assesses The Monarch's current operation during a surprise audit and assigns him an EMA Level of '''5'. At the end of the episode, following Dean Venture cutting The Monarch a million dollar check that makes him the top Guild earner for the month, Dr. Z raises The Monarch's EMA Level to 6'''. * [[The Bellicose Proxy|The Bellicose Proxy]]:' The Monarch and Henchman 21 visit Guild Strategic Operations, seeking field work to increase The Monarch's EMA. Watch and Ward tell them about the Big Villain Program, where you tutor a Guild newbie for a day to get massive brownie points with the Guild EMA review board. The Monarch and 21 mentor Augustus St. Cloud in arching Billy Quizboy and Pete White, which apparently is enough to raise The Monarch's EMA status to Level '''7'. * [[The Unicorn in Captivity|'The Unicorn in Captivity']]:''' After Dr. Venture invents the revolutionary teleporters, The Guild becomes so intent on stealing them that they offer The Monarch one full EMA Level upgrade if he successfully aids CopyCat's team in retrieving the new technology. The Monarch and Henchman 21 are ultimately successful in obtaining the teleporters for The Guild, upgrading him to Level '''8. * [[The Forecast Manufacturer|''The Forecast Manufacturer]]':' The Guild receives intel from the O.S.I. that The Creep, a former O.S.I. agent who has started his own rogue version of The Peril Partnership, is using a Guild weather machine to create a blizzard over New York. Dr. Mrs. The Monarch tells The Monarch that he will receive one full EMA Level upgrade if he successfully pulls off a covert mission, which ends up being an infiltration of The Creep's lair and the assassination of The Creep. During the course of the mission The Monarch shows his Guild ID card to The Creep, confirming that The Monarch is currently a Level '''8'. The Creep accidentally dies when he becomes distracted during a game of "Dive Bomb" and a lawn dart impales his skull, completing The Monarch's mission for him and bringing him to Level 9'''. * [[The Saphrax Protocol|The Saphrax Protocol]]:' Following a ceremonial "Tenning" test on Meteor Majeure that is heavy on ritual and symbolism, The Monarch and Henchman 21 successfully prove their worth to the Council review board and are both awarded Level '''10' villain status. Episode Appearances Season 1 * ''The Terrible Secret of Turtle Bay'' * [[Dia de los Dangerous!|''Dia de los Dangerous!]] * [[Mid-Life Chrysalis|''Mid-Life Chrysalis]] * [[Tag Sale - You're It!|''Tag Sale - You're It!]] * [[Home Insecurity|''Home Insecurity]] * ''Are You There, God? It's Me, Dean'' * ''Past Tense'' (cameo) * ''The Trial of the Monarch'' * ''Return to Spider-Skull Island'' * ''A Very Venture Christmas'' Season 2 * ''Powerless in the Face of Death'' * ''Hate Floats'' * [[Victor. Echo. November.|''Victor. Echo. November.]] * [[Fallen Arches|''Fallen Arches]] * ''I Know Why the Caged Bird Kills'' * [[Showdown at Cremation Creek (Part I)|''Showdown at Cremation Creek (Part I)]] * [[Showdown at Cremation Creek (Part II)|''Showdown at Cremation Creek (Part II)]] Season 3 * ''Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny'' * ''Home is Where the Hate is'' * ''The Invisible Hand of Fate'' * [[The Buddy System (Venture Bros. episode)|''The Buddy System (Venture Bros. episode)]] * [[Tears of a Sea Cow|''Tears of a Sea Cow]] * ''The Lepidopterists'' * [[The Family That Slays Together, Stays Together (Part I)|''The Family That Slays Together, Stays Together (Part I)]] * [[The Family That Slays Together, Stays Together (Part II)|''The Family That Slays Together, Stays Together (Part II)]] Season 4 * ''Blood of the Father, Heart of Steel'' * ''Handsome Ransom'' * ''Return to Malice'' * ''Self-Medication'' * ''Pinstripes & Poltergeists'' * ''The Diving Bell Vs. The Butter-glider'' * ''Assisted Suicide'' * [[Operation P.R.O.M.|''Operation P.R.O.M.]] * [[From the Ladle to the Grave: The Shallow Gravy Story|''From the Ladle to the Grave: The Shallow Gravy Story]] Season 5 * [[What Color is Your Cleansuit?|''What Color is Your Cleansuit?]] * [[SPHINX Rising|''SPHINX Rising]] * ''Bot Seeks Bot'' * ''The Devil's Grip'' Season 6 * ''All This and Gargantua-2'' * ''Hostile Makeover'' * ''Maybe No Go'' * ''Faking Miracles'' * ''Rapacity in Blue'' * [[Tanks for Nuthin'|''Tanks for Nuthin']] * [[It Happening One Night|''It Happening One Night]] * ''A Party for Tarzan'' * ''Red Means Stop'' Season 7 * ''The Venture Bros. & The Curse of the Haunted Problem'' * ''The Rorqual Affair'' * ''Arrears in Science'' * ''The High Cost of Loathing'' * ''The Bellicose Proxy'' * The Unicorn in Captivity * The Terminus Mandate * ''The Forecast Manufacturer'' * ''The Saphrax Protocol'' Christmas Songs *Little Drummer Boy/ Peace on Earth *Hard Candy Christmas *Venture Aid 2006 *Fairytale of New York * The Chipmunk Song Trivia *Some of The Monarch's earlier costumes are reminiscent of the Batman villain Killer Moth. *A picture of The Monarch playing with Dr. Venture, first shown in the season 5 episode ''SPHINX Rising'', implies that the two may have been close friends as children. **In ''Arrears in Science'' it was implied that Jonas Venture Sr. might be his real father, making him the half-brother of his enemy. **In ''The Saphrax Protocol'' it was revealed that The Monarch and Dr. Venture are blood relatives. *Apparently, The Monarch's father The Blue Morpho was an anti-hero, who, as a villain, often teamed up with heroes. *His drink of choice is Fresca. *The Monarch's real name, Malcom Fitzcarraldo, was revealed in two parts over the span of a decade. **'Season 3:' "Malcom" was given to us in ''Shadowman 9: In the Cradle of Destiny'' on June 1st, 2008, almost four full years after the original premiere of the series (not including the pilot, which aired in 2003). **'Season 7:' The full name "Malcom Fitzcarraldo" was shown ten years later on Vendata's heads up display in ''Arrears in Science'''' on August 20th, 2018. **'Season 7:' The surname "Fitzcarraldo" was spoken aloud for the first time in the next episode, [[The High Cost of Loathing|''The High Cost of Loathing]], on August 26, 2018. * The surname "Fitzcarraldo" is a reference to the 1982 Werner Herzog film ''Fitzcarraldo''. It portrays would-be rubber baron Brian Sweeney Fitzgerald, an Irishman known in Peru as Fitzcarraldo, who is determined to transport a steamship over a steep hill in order to access a rich rubber territory in the Amazon Basin. The film is derived from the historic events of Peruvian rubber baron Carlos Fitzcarrald. * His family home--the Fitzcarraldo mansion--is based on a real location in Newark, New Jersey: the Krueger-Scott Mansion. Gallery Picture1-66.png|The Monarch in college. scrpilot2.jpg|The Monarch in the pilot scr06.jpg|The Monarch's original costume. shot07.jpg|"I thought I was Shadow Guy 6" - The Monarch Screen shot 2010-10-21 at 7.58.01 PM.png|The Monarch as a child shot119789.jpg monarch_blue.jpg scr03.jpg Screen shot 2010-12-06 at 8.47.24 PM.png Rusty and Malcom - Childhood Photo - Venture Bros.jpg|The Monarch is unable to remember this childhood photo being taken. Pictured L-R: Swifty, Col. Gentleman, Action Man, Jonas Venture Sr., Mrs. Fitzcarraldo, Blue Morpho, Rusty Venture (foreground), Malcom Fitzcarraldo (foreground) Venturion identifies Malcom Fitzcarraldo.png|Venturion identifies Malcom Fitzcarraldo as his son. (Arrears in Science, 2018) imageload.jpg|The Monarch Action Figure Monarch-Arch-of-the-Month.jpg|Top earner! (The High Cost of Loathing) The mighty monarch.png|The Monarch walking into somewhere he probably doesn't belong References Category:Characters Category:Voiced By Christopher McCulloch Category:Male Characters Category:Monarch Family Category:The Guild of Calamitous Intent Category:Villains Category:Former Henchpersons Category:Former Inhabitants of Malice Category:Inhabitants of New Jersey Category:Venture Family Category:Prison Inmates Category:Featured Articles Category:Cat owners